Page 2134 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 29 May 1991
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It is always open to the members of this house to remove me as Chief Minister, in the next five minutes or the next week or the next month, if that is their wish. I have no great desire to stand here and be the whipping boy for this house or for this electorate for another eight months. If it is the wish of this Assembly and of the electorate that I do so, I will continue to do the job that I was elected to do. I take no great pleasure in it. I take no great pleasure in closing a school or closing a hospital, and, if anybody thinks that, then they do not know me. But I will continue to provide responsible, prudent government in the interests of this community so long as it is the wish of this community that I do so.
I think that we can get into a political fight here. We can rip each other to shreds. We can destroy each other's integrity and character and honour. If that is the wish of this Assembly, then I am prepared to sit here and listen to it; but I will be greatly disappointed if the debate degenerates into that kind of a debate.
MR COLLAERY (11.00): I stand as a normal member of this Assembly again. I am relieved to be standing where I am. I am pleased that I can now move to the cross benches and move on those issues that have so interested us. I am sure that the Labor Party will have an interest in this in a legitimate political opportunistic way, but they also will stand on their future performance, and their past performance. I am not going to dwell on it, because we have an informed public and they will make their own decisions.
I want to take this opportunity to look back over the last 18 months. I want to take the opportunity to particularly thank the public servants, the many loyal, devoted, hardworking public servants of our ACT Administration who have assisted me with our reform program. I am very pleased to say that the Government has made significant progress in many areas of social justice, social equity and programming in this Territory. If you do not believe me, you only need to go down to the Griffin Centre or to other places, such as disability hostels, to know how the advisings of those public servants and the work we have done together in a collegiate manner are regarded.
I am honoured to have led those people, particularly the dedicated staff in the Community Services Bureau. I never ceased to marvel at the time that hardworking public servants spent in the evenings and on weekends accompanying me to endless meetings and to trouble spots. They assisted me in guiding through legislative reforms such as the rental bond legislation, which was a Rally commitment. Later in the day we will produce a list of those commitments the Rally met. It is quite impressive when you look at it. We will certainly provide that. We have done great things - - -
Mrs Grassby: What about the Human Rights Bill?
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